CHHINDWARA, India — The Special Investigation Team (SIT) probing the Coldrif cough syrup tragedy in Madhya Pradesh took accused pediatrician Praveen Soni into custody for three days on Thursday as authorities continue to unravel how a contaminated medicine led to the deaths of multiple children.
SIT officers arrived at Chhindwara jail in the morning and emerged shortly afterward with Soni, who was transported to the Parasia police station for questioning. Police sources said the custody request had been filed several days earlier as part of the ongoing investigation.
Soni was arrested on October 5 after an FIR was filed accusing him of recommending the adulterated Coldrif syrup, which allegedly caused the deaths of at least 25 children in Chhindwara and surrounding districts. He has been held at Chhindwara jail since his arrest.
The SIT recently arrested his wife, Jyoti Soni, who owns a pharmacy located inside Soni’s private hospital in the Parasia block. Many of the affected children were prescribed the cough syrup at this facility.
In total, seven people have been arrested in connection with the case, including G. Ranganathan, the owner of Sresan Pharmaceuticals in Tamil Nadu, the company that manufactured the Coldrif syrup. Police have also detained individuals involved in the distribution chain in Madhya Pradesh.
At least 26 children under the age of five from Chhindwara, Pandhurna, and Betul districts died from kidney failure after consuming the syrup. Three additional deaths were reported in Rajasthan.
The incident prompted the World Health Organization to issue a global alert warning against three substandard oral cough syrups produced in India: Coldrif, Respifresh TR, and ReLife.
Laboratory tests conducted by the Madhya Pradesh government found that the Coldrif syrup contained 48.6 percent diethylene glycol — a highly toxic substance — far above the 0.1 percent permissible limit.
Following the deaths, the product was banned in Tamil Nadu, Madhya Pradesh, Kerala, Karnataka, Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Puducherry, West Bengal, and Delhi. (Source: IANS)
